Tell us about your journey...
I started my career working for De Vere Hotels and then went to work for Hayley Conference Centres and became a board director until we sold the company to Principle Hotels in 2005. I then secured the finance and lead the build for a new hotel in the centre of Birmingham called Hotel La Tour. This is now in different ownership and so three friends/colleagues and I from those days got together in 2015 to start Workplace. Workplace is a 5 star shared office and co-working business in the centre of Manchester. We have private office and hot desks for use of individuals and companies.
What do you most admire in a colleague?
Enthusiasm and dedication are two of the most admirable traits of colleagues, along with complete trust. Being in business is hard and if you don’t have these traits in you and your colleagues it makes the job impossible.
What moment in your life most helped in shaping your career?
The moment that shaped my career was way back when I was in my first job working as a management trainee for De Vere Hotels. I was asked to go and “look after” the sales office while the Hotel looked for a new Sales Manager. This gave me a new challenge that I loved but more than that it gave me confidence as my manager really believed I could do the job. I never looked back and stayed in a sales role for the rest of my career.
Which women do you look to in life to help guide you?
I have a small group of very close friends who are my rocks. We have known each other for over 30 years and we have each others backs. My main guide however is my Mum. She is uncompromisingly positive and a really “dooer”. I often find myself in difficult spots and ask myself “What would Mum do?”
What advice would you give your twenty-year-old self?
I would tell my 20 year old self not to take myself so seriously. I think in my twenties I was very determined and ambitious and I took my work very seriously. It was a fun and exciting job looking back but I don’t think I realised that at the time.